CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
The wind blowing in off the ocean was cool, but once they made their way between the stands, it went still and grew warmer. They stopped for pizza (which Loki loved almost as much as Selig and Aislinn did) and then, as promised, for funnel cake.
McKenna smiled as they sat down on one of the beachfront benches. The twins napped in their stroller, oblivious to everything, and she sat back to watch as Selig and Aislinn climbed up onto Loki's lap-each one claiming a thigh-to share the funnel cake. She couldn't tell who enjoyed it more, but at least no one fought over it, and she eased her iPhone from her purse to take a picture of the three of them.
Sometimes, when she thought about what her life had been like prior to Loki's unceremonious crash into her apartment, it amazed her that all the things she thought she didn't want or would never have, were now what she treasured most. She'd never been one to dream of the days when she had children, far preferring her independence over child-rearing. Nor did she think she would ever settle down, since every guy she dated seemed to be more Mr. Right-Now than Mr. Right. And she'd been perfectly happy.
But now, as she sat back and watched Loki break off a piece of funnel cake for Aislinn and laugh at something Selig said, she couldn't believe she'd ever been happy alone. That she'd never wanted the things she now knew she could never be without. And when Loki looked over at her and winked, her heart actually skipped a beat. He still had the ability to take her breath away. He probably always would.
Selig looked over and smiled. "Want some, Mommy?"
"Sure, if there's any left."
He pointed to the plate. "How about that one, Daddy?"
"You don't think that's too much? Mommy's pretty tiny. I don't know if she can eat that much."
Aislinn nodded. "It's fine, Daddy. Right, Selig?"
Loki broke off the piece Selig pointed out and gave it to him to hand to her. It was delicious, with just the right amount of powdered sugar and she sighed softly. Boardwalk funnel cake was one of the treasures of the Jersey shore.
Loki leaned around Selig and brushed her lips with a teasingly light kiss. "You taste sweet, love," he murmured.
"I try."
Selig groaned, pulling off another piece of cake. "Daddy... ew..."
"Trust me, Sel, the time will come when you won't think it so ew."
Selig chewed thoughtfully on his piece of cake before shaking his head. "Nope, Daddy. I won't ever kiss anyone but Mommy."
"Me, neither," Aislinn declared. "Except for you, Daddy."
"Good. I don't want to think about either one of you kissing anyone for a very long time." Loki gently ruffled Selig's hair. "You'll give me gray hair, both of you."
"Why?" Selig asked, pulling off another piece of funnel cake before peering up at Loki.
"Because I want you and your brother and sisters to stay like this for as long as possible, that's why."
"That makes two of us," McKenna said, leaning her head against Loki's shoulder.
"Don't worry, Mommy." Selig handed her another piece of cake. "I don't want to give Daddy gray hair."
She smiled, trying to imagine Loki with anything other than his thick black hair. Impossible. "I'm sure he appreciates that, Sel."
"He does." Loki kissed the top of Selig's hair as he split the last piece of funnel cake into halves and gave one to him and one to Aislinn. "Why don't we see what rides are open?"
"Can we go on the merry-go-round, Daddy?" Aislinn asked, sliding down from his leg at the same time as Selig did.
McKenna smiled. Loki's first experience with a carousel ended with him trying desperately to hold down the three chocolate milkshakes he'd drunk, while Shay ran off in search of ginger ale and McKenna sat with him on a bench. Since then, he tended to shy away from it, but now, he gazed down at her and said, "Of course, little bit."
He crouched and scooped Aislinn into one arm and held out his free hand to Selig, who took it, asking, "Can I come on it, too?"
"Of course you can, Selig." Loki smiled down at him. "Unless Mommy wants to ride it with you."
McKenna smiled. "No, that's okay. You can take them."
He winked. "Mommy just wants to see me throw up."
"Does it make you sick, Daddy?" Selig asked, his forehead furrowing as he peered up at him.
"Not really. It did once, but it was a long time ago and I'd had one too many milkshakes. I think I should be all right, now."
McKenna grinned as she wheeled the stroller around. "And he didn't exactly throw up, Selig. He just turned a little green."
Loki winked at her this time, over one shoulder. "You remember?"
"Of course I remember." She steered the stroller with one hand and eased her free arm about his waist to give him a squeeze, hooking her fingers into the waistband of his Levi's. "You almost kissed me for the first time that night."
"Ew," Selig groaned, clapping his free hand over his eyes. "Kissing."
Aislinn's eyes went round. "You wanted to kiss Mommy?"
"More than you could ever imagine, little bit," Loki told her. "But, it didn't quite work out that way."
"What happened?" Selig asked.
"Agent Coulson happened." It was McKenna's turn to wink at Loki. "We should try that clown balloon water race thing."
Loki shook his head. "I'll take a pass, love. Just looking at it makes my back hurt."
"Everything makes your back hurt." She eased her fingers from the waistband and let her hand skim down over his backside. He filled out Levi's like nobody's business, which made resisting the urge to touch him almost impossible, so she didn't even try.
He groaned softly. "Take care, love. There are children present."
"Can't help it, Jötunn," she replied, pushing up onto her tiptoes to brush her lips over his cheek. "You're irresistible."
Selig groaned. "Mommy, ew."
"Sorry, little man," she replied, smiling as she added, "Someday, you'll understand."
By then, they'd reached the carousel, with its wooden horses painted in psychedelic shades of blue, yellow, pink, and green. Selig let go of Loki's hand as he raced toward it and Aislinn shouted, "Down, Daddy, please!"
He set her down while McKenna dug out the ticket book and ripped out the necessary number of tickets, then handed them to the taker while Loki followed Selig and Aislinn.
The wind picked up, and McKenna shivered, so she dug out her Rutgers sweatshirt from the basket under the double stroller, and made sure the twins were warm enough by tucking a lightweight fleece blanket around each one of them. When she looked up, the carousel was going and while Selig and Aislinn looked to be having the time of their lives, Loki looked less than thrilled to be among the wooden horses.
When the ride ended, he looked a little green around the gills, as her mother used to say, but he held onto both Selig and Aislinn's hands as they made their way over to where she sat, rolling the stroller back and forth.
"I thought you might need this," she said, holding up a bottle of Canada Dry ginger ale that she'd tucked into the stroller basket as well.
"Thank you." Loki dropped onto the bench next to her and twisted off the cap.
"Remember, small sips."
He nodded, doing just that as Aislinn touched his knee. "Are you okay, Daddy?"
He lowered the bottle. "I'm fine, little bit. Just a little woozy, as Mommy would say."
Selig shoved his hair out of his eyes, grunting in annoyance as the wind promptly blew it back. "But, Daddy... nothing can hurt you, right?"
"Apparently the mighty Loki Odinson's greatest weakness is going in a slow circle," McKenna said, grinning as she lightly punched Loki in the shoulder. "Right?"
He recapped the soda and his eyes held hints of swirling green as he replied, "That's my second greatest weakness, Midgardian."
"What's your first one, Daddy?" Aislinn asked, holding out a hand. "Sip?"
He twisted the cap off. "A sip only, Al. And in answer to your question, your mother is my greatest weakness. And what's worse? She knows it."
"What does that mean?" Selig asked, reaching to snatch the ginger ale from Aislinn. "Can I?"
Loki nodded. "It means there's nothing I wouldn't do for your mother and she knows it."
Selig lifted the bottle to his lips and sipped, then wrinkled his nose as the soda fizzed. He handed the bottle back to Loki. "So, you'd wrestle a lion for her?"
"I'd wrestle the biggest lion in the nine realms for her."
"What about a bear, Daddy?"
"As many as she wanted."
McKenna grinned, tugging her sleeves down over her hands as the night grew chillier. Selig's eyes danced with mischief. "How about a bilgesnipe, Daddy?"
"I'd take on an entire pack of them if I had to, Sel." The green faded from his skin as he sat back and draped an arm along the back of the bench. His fingertips rested against her shoulder, stroking lightly back and forth.
"Well, with any luck, we won't have to worry about it." She leaned her head against his shoulder. "And you've already faced the worst of the worst for me when you made sure Grant Ward would never trouble any of us again."
His hand slid down over her shoulder entirely and he pressed her against him. "I've always said I'd never let anything happen to you and I meant it."
"Daddy, can I take Aislinn on the merry go round again?" Selig asked.
"I don't know, Sel."
"You're right here, though. Please."
Loki sighed and glanced down at her. "What do you think, love?"
"We're right here. I think they'll be okay. It's not exactly busy here tonight."
With a sigh, Loki sat forward to pull the ticket book out and rip off the tickets. "Give these to the lady, like I did. And I'll meet you right at the gate when it's over."
Selig beamed as he grabbed the tickets. "Okay, Daddy! Come on, Al!"
They rushed off and McKenna smiled as Loki sat back and she leaned against him once more. "This is a lot better than that first night here, isn't it?"
"Oh, I don't know. I was able to do this," he swept her hair lightly to the side and bent over, and she shivered as he gently nipped the slope of her neck, "without anyone saying, 'ew.'"
Her eyes slid shut as he nipped her again. "That still gives me chills, Loki."
"It's supposed to, darling girl," he whispered just before he flicked the tip of his tongue against her skin. She couldn't hold back her sigh as he nipped her once more, then pulled back.
She settled against him, smiling as Selig and Aislinn waved from their horses. They looked so happy, so innocently happy, that she wished she had some way to freeze time for just a while, to savor this moment, when everything was as perfect as it could possibly be.
***
By the time they returned to the house, Selig was the only one of the Odinson children who managed to remain awake. "I had so much fun, Mommy," he said as he sank back into the pillows. "I love coming here."
"So do I, sweetie," she told him, tugging the covers up and smoothing them down. "My mom used to bring me here every summer and when I was old enough to come by myself, I would come down here with Aunt Shay."
"Really?"
She nodded. "We stayed in Seaside, but Point Pleasant is better when you're little." She perched on the edge of his bed. "You and Aislinn were so good tonight. That's how brothers and sisters should get along."
"I like her, Mommy. She's not as noisy as Nicky and Kyra are."
"Well, she can talk. She can tell us if she needs something. They can't yet. But, one day, you will all be able to go on rides together."
"Do you think Daddy will still turn green on the merry go round by then?"
McKenna chuckled and nodded. "Yes, Sel. I think he will. Somehow, I think he'll always turn green on it."
"Did he really almost throw up the first time?"
"He did. He'd had three chocolate milkshakes before, though, which didn't help."
"Why so many?"
Smoothing Selig's thick hair away from his face, she said, "Because he'd never had one before and they tasted so wonderful, he just had to have another. And another."
"I bet he won't ever do that again. Like the time I tried to eat that lemon."
"I thought your face would be puckered forever," she said, letting her hand curve against his cheek. "But, you wanted to taste it, so I let you."
"Ew."
"I know. But lemons are good when they're blended with other things. They just aren't so good when you try to eat them like an orange."
"I know." Selig plucked at the blanket. "Mommy?"
"What, sweetie?"
"Well, what did you mean, Agent Coulson happened?"
She sat up. "Remember when Ward had us, and you asked me about what Daddy had done in New York?" She waited for him to nod before continuing, "Well, Daddy got in a lot of trouble for that. And Agent Coulson was the one who'd captured him."
"But you're friends now."
"We are now," she nodded, "but we weren't then. But, Daddy is very clever and he found a way out of the trouble he'd gotten into. Like you do when we catch you doing something you shouldn't be doing. And now they work together instead of against each other."
"Do you think Daddy will ever be bad again?"
"Honestly?" She shook her head. "No. I don't. You'll understand better when you're older-"
"You always say that, Mommy! I'm five, I understand a lot of things now," Selig interrupted.
"I know and you will." She patted him through the covers. "But what I was going to say is that Daddy has more good in his life than bad now and when you're happy and content with the world around you, and your place in it, you don't need to prove anything. He's happy now."
"I'm happy, too, Mommy. Happy that he isn't really dead." Selig's expression turned stone-serious and his eyes grew shiny. "I missed him so much."
"I know you did, little man. And the greatest gift we all received was his returning to us." Her throat tightened and she swallowed hard against the sudden lump. "Aside from you guys being born and me and Daddy's wedding day, that was the happiest day of my life."
"Me, too."
"I know." She stood, then bent over to brush a kiss over his forehead. "And now, it's time for sleep, little man. We have a busy day of playing on the beach tomorrow and maybe we'll take a run over to Barnegat Lighthouse."
He nodded sleepily. "Okay, Mommy."
"Good night, Selig." She kissed his forehead once more. "I love you."
"'Night, Mommy. I love you, too."
She smiled as she stepped out of Selig's room and bumped into Loki. "He's all yours, but he's just about asleep."
"I'm amazed he made it this far. The other three are snoring away." He paused in the doorway. "Why don't you grab that bottle of wine we didn't open earlier and meet me out on the deck?"
"It's probably sixty degrees out there, Loki. I'll freeze."
He grinned and winked. "Don't worry, darling girl. I'll keep you warm."